The Glee Factor
by theDANNIsaur
Summary: Blaine Anderson gets his big break when he auditions for the popular televised talent show 'Glee', although he gets more than he expected when his mentor just happens to be famous Broadway star, Kurt Hummel.


**Title: ** The Glee Factor (1/?)

**Rating: **T for later chapters

**Word Count:** 3, 950

**Disclaimer: **I don't own _Glee. _

This was it.

This was really it.

He was here.

After months of preparation, weeks of nerves, days of doubt and hours of complete terror, Blaine Anderson was finally here, waiting backstage for his name to be called.

He gripped the microphone that he had been given tightly in his hand and tried to remember how to breathe properly. To be completely honest, he was terrified. He half wanted to turn on his heels and bolt out of the arena at that very second but he knew that he had to go through with this. It was what he had always wanted, to be recognised for his voice and talent. Which was why he found himself standing backstage, ready to sing in front of an arena full of people on the popular televised talent show, showcasing contestants' singing voices, 'Glee' .

It was popular, that was for sure, returning for its second year in the USA. He had missed out on auditioning the first year, hesitating for too long about sending an application in that he decided too late, way past the deadline. Still, maybe it was for the best. His voice had gotten better over the past year and he felt that he was at his strongest right now.

After much prodding and pushing from his family, all completely supportive of him, he had decided to audition this year for definite and would be waiting for the show to hold the auditions in Michigan, where he lived.

He heard the crowd whistle and cheer as an act got through. Well, he gathered that they must have gotten through judging by that reaction. From the curtains, appeared a young black woman, slightly on the heavier side with a grin on her face. Yes, she had definitely gotten through.

"Well done, Mercedes!" a voice piped up, causing Blaine to turn around to see where it had came from.

His eyes widened slightly when he recognised the slim figure of the blonde walking up to Mercedes. That was Quinn Fabray, the presenter of the X Factor. She was smiling kindly at the other girl, her hair in loose waves falling to beneath her shoulders.

Despite the fact that Blaine wasn't interested in girls, he had to admit that Quinn was stunning. She'd always possessed a natural beauty about her. Take now for example as she wore little makeup and sported a knee-length white sundress.

Her arms were outstretched as she pulled Mercedes into a hug. "You were amazing!" Blaine heard her say to the other competitor who's eyes were still sparkling with happy tears. "I can't wait to see you at bootcamp."

"Thank you so much," Mercedes gushed, dabbing lightly at her eyes, obviously still feeling emotional after her performance. With another final hug from Quinn, she walked towards the door. As she passed Blaine she gave him a small smile.

"Good luck," she told him and Blaine immediately smiled. Mercedes seemed nice. He definitely wished her luck for further into the competition.

The next competitor, a girl called Sugar Motta, was called on and she made her way to the stage, teetering dangerously in her oversized heels. Really, there was no need for wedges to be as big as that, Blaine noted, disapprovingly.

As she disappeared behind the black curtain, he heard the crowd cheer again, if only because they felt obliged to.

While Sugar introduced herself, Blaine clasped his hands together, his palms sweating and his heart racing. _Come on, Blaine, pull yourself together, _he urged himself.

"Hi, there," a voice called from behind him and he spun around to face Quinn. She was smiling at him kindly and he couldn't help but return it.

"Hi," he replied.

"Blaine Anderson, right?" she asked.

"That's right," he nodded, a little jerkily. Damn it, he couldn't let his nerves get the better of him now.

"I can tell you're nervous," Quinn stated, tilting her head to the side and giving him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll be great. We've got a pretty friendly crowd in tonight."

As if they were just waiting to contradict her, a chorus of 'boo's erupted from the stage area, causing Blaine's blood to run cold. Clearly, this Sugar Motta girl was not making any sort of good impression.

He turned back to Quinn who winced apologetically. "You'll be fine!" she said, quickly.

Blaine stared at her before letting out a shuddering breath. "I...better get ready," he said, hoarsely.

"Good luck," Quinn smiled, giving his arm a squeeze.

He thanked her and climbed the few metal stairs before the stage and poked his head around the curtain so he could see onstage.

Sugar was standing there, her hands on her hips, glaring indignantly at the crowd who were still making their displeasure well known. Unlike contestants Blaine had seen on television, Sugar didn't break down in tears. Instead she threw her arms above her head in exasperation. "What are you people talking about? I was AMAZING!"

"I beg to differ, Pepper," a sarcastic voice sounded, interrupting Sugar's ranting.

"It's _Sugar," _the competitor emphasised.

"I really don't care," replied the person who had most likely gotten her name wrong on purpose. Blaine turned to look at said person even though he already knew who it was.

Sue Sylvester, dressed in her usual tracksuit number was leaning back in one of the chairs behind the judges table, a bored expression on her ageing face. Sue was well known across the nation for being a ruthless cheerleading coach. She had started off small with high school troupes and had eventually begun coaching at camps. One such camp just happened to be the one that Brittany Pierce went to.

Brittany Pierce was a girl who made up what she lacked in brain cells, with her talent. She was a skilled dancer, winning many competitions over the years and she was the girl that had made Sue Sylvester famous, even if it was unknowingly so.

Ever since Brittany had starred in a movie about cheerleading, being taught the tricks a cheerleader should know by one Sue Sylvester, the tracksuit-wearing older woman had rocketed to fame, her sarcastic phrases spouted on talk shows appearing on things like mugs and keyrings all over America. Despite her rudeness and harsh words, there was always something appealing about the woman that the nation seemed to like, which was what helped land her a place on the judging panel.

Sue was the bad cop of the panel, providing negative comments to balance out the mostly positive ones of the other three judges. She was a no-nonsense sort of woman who had no time for sob stories or anything of the sort. She sat, listened to a contestant perform and gave them feedback, not caring about their sensitive feelings or emotions. While some people didn't really approve of the approach Sue had, Blaine admired the way she didn't beat around the bush and told it like it was.

That didn't mean to say he was looking forward to her critiquing his own performance.

"Sue..." sounded another voice, a slight warning tone in it, as if cautioning Sue not to say anything too offensive. Blaine's hazel eyes travelled to the person who had spoken and recognised them immediately.

William Schuester, a famous singer-turned-music-producer was sitting at the other end of the table from Sue, leaning back in his chair, pen in hand. He turned away from Sue and looked at Sugar, a hesitant expression on his face.

Will was the kind of guy who didn't like to put anyone down, unlike Sue. He always gave constructive criticism instead of telling someone flat out that they couldn't sing. Blaine could see that it made him uncomfortable to do even that.

He shuffled uncomfortably in his chair before clasping his hands on the table in front of him and looking up to where Sugar stood on the stage, one hand on her hip. Blaine watched as he chewed on his lip for a moment, as if he was hesitating whether or not to actually say the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

"Sugar, that was...well, that was a memorable performance," he finally managed, causing a chuckle to ripple through the audience. "I just don't think your voice is strong enough for this kind of competition. It's a tough road and I'm not too sure you would make it far..." Will looked guilty as he said this but it was clear what he was saying was the truth.

"I agree, Will!" another voice piped up. Blaine couldn't help but smile when his eyes landed on Rachel Berry. The Broadway star had always been an enthusiastic member of the judging panel and although she could be slightly blunt with her words at times, it was clear the girl meant nothing in a malicious way.

Rachel gave Sugar a small smile before tilting her head to the side and letting her know what she had to say about her performance. "Well, Sugar, although you do seem very enthusiastic about performing, I just don't think that you're, well, _good enough_ to get through to bootcamp," she said, and then noticed the glare Sugar was sending her way. "Wh-what I mean is that it's unlikely that you'll get very far in the competition as Will did say it's a tough, tough road to go on and we have seen some contestants with very, _very _strong singing voices and, frankly, I just don't think that you could match up to them."

That was another thing about Rachel Berry: she tended to talk a lot.

It seemed that the audience agreed with her opinion though due to the cheers and applause that sounded. She shot a grin at them all then turned back to face Sugar with a satisfied look on her face. The diva onstage, however, did not look impressed with her words. Luckily before she could lash back out at Rachel, someone else spoke and Blaine immediately straightened upwards and craned his neck further to catch a glimpse of the person speaking.

Sitting in between Rachel and Sue, his hair perfectly styled and dressed in clothes only he could pull off, was Kurt Hummel: best friend and fellow Broadway actor of Rachel. Blaine couldn't help but inhale sharply at the sight of him. He had always thought that Kurt was an extremely attractive man and perhaps the fact that he was openly gay helped as well but seeing him here, in person, well that was something else entirely. Blaine was so focused on Kurt's face that he nearly missed what he was saying to Sugar, managing to catch it just in time.

"Wow, Sugar, I admire the fact that you came here today to perform but..." the smile on Kurt's lips faded and Blaine couldn't help but feel sad to see it go as pathetic as that was. "I have to agree with the others when I say that I don't think you're quite cut out for this competition. I'm sorry."

It was clear that Sugar just hadn't been successful during her audition and although Blaine felt sorry for her, his sympathy couldn't help but wane a little at the scoff she let out before flouncing off the stage, not even letting the judges cast their votes – not that it was needed anyway.

She pushed past Blaine, marching down the stairs and out the door, not even bothering stopping to talk to Quinn who had been waiting to comfort her as she came off. Blaine watched her go, chewing on his lip. It must be hard, hoping to become a singer only to be told that you weren't good enough. Blaine didn't think he would be able to handle that, which was why, when one of the stagehands called him forward, he couldn't move.

He stood still, holding on tightly to the microphone in his hands, unmoving. He couldn't do this. He couldn't. Oh God, what was he even _thinking _coming here? There was no way he was going to get through to the next round. He wasn't talented enough. He would get booed offstage, just like Sugar had. He wasn't even going to make it to the next round. He would have to give up everything he had been dreaming about since he was a kid. He would be humiliated on national television. He would screw everything up and forget the words. He would embarrass himself in front of Kurt freaking Hummel.

He would be as well turning on his heel and running out right now, but a soft voice broke through his thoughts.

"Go on," Quinn coaxed him. "You'll be fine."

He looked at her, a dubious expression on his face but all he could see was a genuine smile so he nodded shakily, taking a deep breath before walking out onto the stage quickly before he had any time to turn back.

As soon as the crowd was able to see him, whistles and applause filled the air. He couldn't see them though, the bright stage lights making that impossible.

Stopping in the centre of the stage, he turned to face the judges, his heart in his mouth, feeling like he was going to throw up at any moment. He clutched the microphone in his hands, wondering if he should be the one to speak first when Kurt beat him to it.

"Hello there," he said, brightly, a warm smile on his face. "What's your name?"

He swallowed roughly before speaking. "Blaine Anderson," he replied, managing to sound vaguely coherent.

"Well, Blaine Anderson, the floor's all yours. Show us what you've got," Kurt beamed and Blaine was nearly thrown by how damn adorable that smile was.

He nodded stiffly before signalling to one of the stage hands to play his track.

As the intro of the song started, Blaine closed his eyes. He imagined himself back in his bedroom, his door shut with nobody watching him. It was just him and the music. All he had to do was keep that mental image stored in his head and he would be okay. He could do this.

When it got to the opening line, he convinced himself that he wasn't in an arena full of people watching him. He forgot that there were about ten different cameras on him. He forgot that this would be broadcast over television. All he did was open his mouth and sing.

"_Life's too short to even care at all oh woah_

_I'm losing my mind, losing my mind, losing control_

_These fishes in the sea they're staring at me_

_Woah oh _

_A wet world aches for the beat of a drum woah oh woah oh"_

A simultaneous cheer erupted throughout the arena and Blaine's eyes flew open to the see the crowd on their feet, cheering and clapping...for him.

They _liked _him.

"_If I could find a way to see this straight I'd run away_

_To some fortune that I should have found by now_

_I'm waiting for this cough syrup to come down, come down..."_

By this time, Blaine was on a roll. He managed to catch his breath at the instrumental part to look out to the judges' panel. Sue sat, just staring at him with an unreadable expression on her face, Will was grinning along with Rachel and Kurt was staring at him, a huge smile on his lips. The crowd were still cheering for him as he continued on with the next verse.

"_Life's too short to even care at all oh woah_

_I'm coming up now, coming up now out of the blue oh_

_These zombies in the park they're looking for my heart woah_

_A dark world aches for the splash of the sun woah oh woah oh"_

The crowd were screaming by this point, jumping up and down and dancing along and Blaine couldn't help but let a smile appear on his face. Well, while he was here, he should better make the most of it. As the chorus started up again, he walked forwards, punching the air with his fist as he went, causing the crowd to go into uproar again.

"_If I could find a way to see this straight I'd run away_

_To some fortune that I should have found by now_

_So I run now to the things they said could restore me,_

_restore life the way it should be_

_I'm waiting for this cough syrup to come down."_

By this point, his nerves had completely gone. He was doing what he loved doing: performing, spinning around on the stage and throwing his arm up, just losing himself in the song.

"_Life's too short to even care at all oh woah_

_I'm losing my mind, losing my mind, losing control"_

He began walking backwards at the next instrumental bit, breathing heavily as he watched in amazement as Kurt stood from his seat at the table to applaud Blaine, shortly followed by Rachel and Will, all three of them clapping enthusiastically, until Sue had no choice but to stand up and join in.

Blaine couldn't believe it. He was overwhelmed. Tears sprang in his hazel eyes as he looked out to the crowd, seeing all of these people on their feet, praising him.

This was the dream.

He swallowed the lump in his throat when he reached the bridge, singing it softly and quietly, if a little breathless. He closed his eyes again but this time he was no longer in his bedroom. Now, he was exactly where he was meant to be: on a stage, singing his heart out in front of hundreds of people. He came to the final lines.

"_One more spoon of cough syrup now woah_

_One more spoon of cough syrup now woah"_

He let out a sigh when he finished the song, dropping the hand holding the microphone down by his side before stepping into the centre of the stage again to face the judges. The crowd were still screaming but it was the judges' opinion that counted for something.

They were still clapping (even if Sue's was a little half-hearted but _still_) and standing. One by one they sat until Kurt was the only one standing and Rachel practically had to pull him back down to sit. Even when he sat he was still applauding Blaine and it was impossible for the curly-haired singer to keep the blush off his face.

Once the noise of the audience had died down and Kurt ceased clapping, Will spoke.

"Well, Blaine, I don't think I'm the only one that would say that your performance was absolutely outstanding," he grinned and was met with an agreeing roar from the audience.

"Thank you, thank you so much," Blaine smiled, his vision becoming slightly blurry.

Sue was next and he bit his lip, knowing that she wasn't a woman who sugar-coated her words. "Well, well, well," she drawled. "Once I got over the ridiculous amount of hair gel you have on your head which rivals that of Schuester's over here and that idiotic contraption you have around your neck"—at this she pointed to Blaine's bowtie—"I was able to focus on your singing and...it was good." At this, she finally let her face relax into a smile.

Blaine let out a shaky sigh of relief and grinned. "Thank you."

Rachel clapped her hands together and beamed at him. "Blaine, that was absolutely fantastic. I was blown away by your talent and the way you pulled off your performance. You really made it your own and it's clear that the crowd loves you. I have nothing but praise for you right now. You are a true star! Now...I'll hand you over to Kurt," she said and some sort of knowing smile appeared on her face as she looked over to her best friend who...appeared to be a little dazed.

"Wow," he said, breathlessly, earning a few chuckles from the crowd and a giggle from Rachel. "That was...Blaine, that was the best performance I've ever seen."

Blaine let out a disbelieving laugh because, holy crap, Kurt Hummel had just said that his audition was the best he had ever seen. Was he _dreaming_?

"Th-thank you," he managed to choke out, hoping his face wasn't as red as it felt.

"Okay, let's put it to a vote!" Will piped up. "From me, it's, of course, a massive yes."

"Promise to lose the hair gel and the clown suit and you've get a yes from me too, buddy," Sue drawled.

"It's a yes from me!" Rachel squealed, clapping again. Boy, she was really enthusiastic.

Blaine grinned, nodding his head in thanks before turning to Kurt. He wasn't sure why but it felt like Kurt's opinion was the one that mattered to him most.

Kurt looked up at him, catching his eye, blue meeting hazel and Blaine's breath caught in his throat. A smile appeared on Kurt's face. "Absolutely 100% yes," he finally said and the crowd was off again.

"Thank you," Blaine replied, speaking through his microphone. "You won't regret this."

"See you at bootcamp, Blaine!" Rachel called after him as he walked offstage.

Blaine waved to the cheering crowd, risking one last glance at Kurt whom, he was surprised to find, still had his eyes on him, smiling softly.

He walked backstage and was immediately met by Quinn. "Congratulations!" she cried, engulfing him in a hug.

"Thank you so much," he laughed, unable to believe what was happening. He had made it. All he had wanted to do in life was sing on stage, whether it be in a competition or not, and he had done that. Blaine couldn't remember the last time he had felt this happy.

Fifteen minutes later, he found himself walking along an empty corridor to the parking lot, all the auditions having wrapped up for the day. He smiled to himself, cell phone in hand ready to call his family and tell them all the good news when a door opened on his left.

And out walked Kurt Hummel.

Blaine stopped in his tracks and his eyes widened. Sure, he had only seen the guy a little while ago but that was with the stage separating them. Now he was close and...wow, Kurt looked good close up.

He was about to keep walking when Kurt spotted him and let out a noise of surprise. Blaine smiled sheepishly.

"Oh, hi, Blaine," Kurt greeted him, a smile appearing on his face.

_Oh, Kurt Hummel knew Blaine Anderson's name, that was nice. _

"H-hi, Kurt," he replied, thankful he didn't do anything embarrassing like squeak or something.

Kurt walked towards him. "I want to say again, you were absolutely outstanding. I meant it when I said that was the best performance I had seen. You have a real gift, Blaine."

If Blaine hadn't known what to say before, he was practically floundering for words now. Eventually he managed to pull himself together to say what he hoped conveyed his feelings well.

"That means so much coming from you. Thank you, Kurt."

Kurt grinned at him, a gorgeous grin. Blaine was pretty sure his heart stopped.

"Well, I have to go," Kurt said. "We're heading to new auditions tomorrow, but I'll see you at bootcamp. You better bring your game." He laughed and gave Blaine's arm a quick squeeze before walking the opposite way down the corridor.

Blaine just stood there for a few second, his mouth hanging open.

This day just kept getting better and better.

And his _Glee _adventure wasn't going to end there.


End file.
